Mohu Developing Streaming Set-Top Box With TV Tuner

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Cord cutting — getting rid of cable or satellite TV in favor of
online video — certainly sounds appealing. Subscription rates
continually go up and often include channels that people don't
even want. But making the break is hard. If you're a fan of HBO
shows, you'll be waiting a year to see them on disc or download.
You're also shut out of most live content, including
sports.

An antenna gets a lot of the live TV back. The major networks are
required by law to transmit all their programming for free,
including HD quality.

Antenna maker Mohu thinks combining broadcast and online video in
one box, with one remote and interface, will be appealing enough
for more people to cut the cord. The company exclusively told
Tom's Guide that it plans to debut such a device by the end of
the year, though it declined to specify a name or price for the
device.

The Mohu device will be much more like using your old cable box
than using a smart TV or a set-top box like Roku or Apple TV.

"We are taking a different approach than other providers, and
we're not wanting to turn the TV into a computer," said Mohu's
president, Mark Buff. Instead, the experience will be about the
same as using a regular cable box. "Power on, power off, channel
up, channel down," he said. He also explained the interface will
feature the kind of program-grid interface common to cable TV.

That interface, however, will point to both broadcast and
Internet video. The Internet options will be "open," Buff said,
allowing people to access any online video sources they like,
such as Netflix, Hulu or Amazon. (In contrast, Apple decides what
services can run on its Apple TV, which is the most popular
set-top box in the U.S., according to research firm NPD.)

Whether the Mohu box can make cord cutting appealing is hard to
tell. Sales of HDTV antennas are brisk, at least for Mohu. Buff
said that its sales increased seven-fold in 2012, to 500,000
units. And he expects sales to double again this year. (We've
tested Mohu antennas and gotten good results, even in Manhattan.)

But Mohu isn't the first to try the combo device. Former set-top
maker Boxee introduced in late 2012 its Boxee TV (later renamed
Cloud DVR) device that included online video, a TV tuner and an
online service for storing recorded TV. The service was still in
beta when Boxee
closed up after being acquired by Samsung in July.